In recent years, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) has become a relatively popular network technology in which information is transferred in small cells having a fixed size. To transfer the cells, ATM switches within a network create a fixed path, referred to as an ATM virtual circuit. The cells transmitted by a source device within the ATM network travel along the virtual circuit created by the ATM switches. A destination device receives the cells from the virtual circuit, and reassembles the information from the cells. The small, constant cell and fixed path allow ATM equipment to readily allocate and manage the bandwidth required to transmit video, audio, and computer data over the same ATM network.
Another popular network technology is the Internet Protocol (IP) networking protocol in which information is divided into blocks called packets. In contrast to ATM, these packets, also referred to as datagrams, may vary in size, and are individually routed across the network from a source device to a destination device. In other words, unlike the virtual circuits within an ATM network, each packet can take a different route from the source to the destination device within the IP network. The destination device extracts the information from the packets and assembles the information into its original form.